Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 19, 2026

Neutron Radiography and Computed Tomography of Biological Systems at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory's High Flux Isotope Reactor
Published on: May 7, 2021
Search for Radiative β-Decay of the Free Neutron
J Byrne1, R U Khafizov2, Yu A Mostovoi2
1Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9QH, U.K.
Abstract:
Results of the first experiment to search for the radiative decay mode of the free neutron are reported. The γ-spectrum was studied in the energy region from 35 keV to 100 keV in six Cs(Tl) scintillators, each set at an angle of 35° to, and shielded from, a central plastic scintillator electron detector. Triple coincidences were recorded with recoil protons detected in a micro-channel plate. A limit for the branching ratio BR < 6.9 × 10(-3) (90 % confidence level) was obtained, which is greater that the theoretical prediction by not more than a few tenths of a percent.
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